Hi, thank you for joining us today, so tell me a bit about yourselves, what have you been up to over the past 12 months?
Shay: We're Bear Park, I'm Shay.
Adam: I'm Adam.
Guy: I'm Guy.
Shay: So yeah we're a band from Newcastle and for the past 12 months we've been doing plenty of good stuff. We've recorded 16 songs in total so that's probably the highlight of it all, that's probably the big thing, the come back as Guy says over there. Tell them what you said Guy.
Guy: It's a come back.
Shay: It's a comeback. So yeah, that's been the main thing, writing loads of songs, taking a gap year because we just finished sixth form last year and yeah we've just been doing that. Just songs and gigs.
Guy: Same things as Shay has just said for the past 5 minutes.
Where did your bands name come from and how did you form?
Shay: I'm going to pass this one to Guy.
Guy: So we were called a different name. So you know the big flour mill in Gateshead, The Baltic right so we use to be called The Baltic. The labelling was like there is too many bands called The Baltic so you need to change your name. So we went onto Google Maps and zoomed in and there's a place near where I live called Bear Park so I just said that's class. There's nee special meaning, just Google Maps. It's like a village. And how the band formed, Adam do you want to explain this one?
Adam: So a good while ago me and Guy were like, 'do you just want to get into the garage and make music?' and we were like yeah alright. So we went into the garage to play music and Guy played guitar and I played drums. And then Guy put a cover of 'Karma Police' on Instagram and Josh Thurlow, he saw it and was like 'do you want to join a band?' and we were like yeah sure. And then me and Guy joined Shay and Josh and yeah that's basically how it went and yeah, Josh isn't in the band anymore but still.
What has been the biggest highlight of Bear Park so far?
Shay: For me personally it would probably be, oh god I thought I had it in my head, maybe we did a gig in Reds Bar at Northumbria Uni last year and we had like 330 people there or something and that was just mental so that's probably mean my highlight so far. Go on Guy.
Guy: Mines working with Gary from The Libertines, that's been pretty awesome not going to lie. Like somebody that's actually done something, you know what I mean.
Adam: I would say mine would be that festival called 'This Is Tomorrow', aye, that one, that was good.
Guy: It doesn't exist anymore.
Adam: Aye, which is a shame because that was good, that was fun.
How did you first get into making music?
Guy: Ah, I've got a good one so I went on holiday for a ski trip with the school and Adam was there. When I got home my parents had redecorated my room and my Grandad had given me a guitar and put it on the wall and it was juts on that wall for like 2 years and I was like why do I not know how to play this instrument on my wall so I just learnt it. Then Adam asked me if I wanted to go to the garage and play some music and it was juts like that. How did you learn to play drums Adam?
Adam: Well ha ha, there were a lot of different reasons why I learned to play drums, one of them being I just like drums. I actually wanted to learn guitar and I went to a music shop in Consett called Steel town Music and he was like 'what instrument do you want to play?' and I went g-drums, I said drums, I was supposed to say guitar but then I said drums so then yeah here I am now.
Guy: So you were supposed to tell him you wanted to play guitar?
Adam: Yeah but then I got scared.
Shay: For me, I heard 'Pumped Up Kicks' by Foster The People when I was like 12 years old and I thought that's mint. And then I got a bass guitar for Christmas and then I just tried to play that bass line and then I kept playing bass and then I got a guitar, started playing the guitar and now I write songs on the guitar. What were you going to say Guy?
Guy: And the Josh Thurlow asked if you wanted to me and play songs in Adam's garage.
Shay: Yes that happened as well. But from making music, just listening to Radiohead and getting into it and then that's it.
What album cover best describes yous?
Shay: So what album describes us, it doesn't necessarily have to be an album I like but it can just be an album cover? 'The Dark Side Of The moon' by Pink Floyd because we come in right we come in as this mundane strip of light, we go through the change and we come out all colourful and beautiful and different. We come in as The Baltic and you become Bear Park. Go on Adam.
Adam: The Nirvana 'Insecticide' one because I'm just a skinny little thing, little boy and that's all.
Guy: Urm this is quite a hard question.
Shay: Velvet Underground and Nico banana?
Guy: Why would we be Velvet Underground with a banana?
Shay: Because we like bananas.
Guy: I don't think I have an answer because Shay's got a good one, Adam's got a good one. I think anything I say won't be as good. Name an album cover and I'll just say that one.
Adam: Bleach by Nirvana because I like black and white and I'm a Newcastle fan.
What are some of your main musical influences?
Shay: First one would probably be, oh yeah Guy you're my main musical influence. Probably Radiohead would be a big one, huge one and there's an Australian band called Hockey Dad who we all like, Adam not so much but still, they're definitely influential. I listen to an English band called Flyte a lot who are amazing. Who am I missing? King Krule, we don't sound like King Krule but we take a lot of his things and he influences a lot of stuff. Has anyone got anything?
Adam: I would say Rod Stewart, no I would say I like funky bass lines, you know even though I'm a drummer so I still like that but yeah.
Guy: I'd say everything that Shay said and Tears For Fears just because they're just brilliant. They are the perfect band, I'd say.
If you could have any celebrity to star in a music video, who would it be?
Shay: I would have it be Jonah Hill, I would have him running down the street, Jonah Hill. No not Joelinton, I'd have Joelinton as well but Jonah Hill because he's mint and he's funny. I'd just have him running down the street in slow motion, it'd be beautiful.
Adam: I'd have Ryan Gosling actually no sorry I say Ryan Gosling but I mean me. I'd have me as the celebrity because I am literally him.
Guy: Ryan Gosling would play you.
Adam: Well I am Ryan Gosling so I'd play Ryan Gosling.
Guy: You'd play Ryan Gosling in his biopic.
Adam: Yeah because I AM him.
Guy: Alright then sound. I'd probably just say Joelinton just like what I thought Shay said, I think it'd be class, we could have a music video about football or something like that. Can you remember that Adidas advert? Was it an Adidas advert it was in?
Adam: Oh I'd have the Joker.
Guy: He's not a celebrity, he's a character, he's a fictional character.
Adam: Well he's famous so.
Guy: Which one?
Adam: Well the best one is dead so I can't really have him, Heath Ledger I can't really have him.
So you're the DJ at the coolest indie night club, what song would you open your set with and what song would you close with?
Shay: Oh god, I'd open the set with. oh god man. I'd probably open it with 'My Number' by Foals, that's a good opener to get everyone in the mood, and then end it with 'Everybody Wants To Rule The World' by Tears For Fears.
Adam: The start and end song? Ok so I'd have 'Where The Hood At?' by DMX and then 'Baby Come Back' but I don't know what band it is, it just sounds like *insert singing* 'BABY COME BACK' something like that, it just had that really cool guitar in it.
Guy: I think I'd start with 'One Vision' by Queen because that's got a class intro and what's got a really long outro? 'Head Over Heels' by Tears For Fears slash 'Broken' with that really long outro and the the crowd will clap and that, it feels complete. You've got a big intro and a long outro, both class songs as well.
Adam: Or I could say 'Shine On You Crazy Diamond' by Pink Floyd because it's like 30 minutes long at the end just to annoy everyone trying to leave.
What's next for you?
Shay: Well as I said at the start, we've got 16 new songs recorded so releasing them is the big thing, but we can't disclose any information on that for all the Geet Canny listeners, we cannot disclose that, we cannot disclose that.
Guy: What do you call your listeners?
Shay: The Canny'ns
Guy: The Cannies.
Shay: The Cannies, aye, The Geet's. Anyway anyway, shut up Guy, I think that's the main thing, getting all that out and promoting it but you don't know when that's going to be so yeah.
Adam: Well I'm going to say, what are we doing next as a band, probably going to the bar just after this so probably leaving, saying thank you and going to the bar. Just going to the bar and getting a pint.
By - Katie Graham
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